Retour à la fac

It is quite funny. It is good to see so many comedians in one single film.

Sure, you could watch "Anchorman" or "Elf" or "Wedding Crashers"... but if you want real Luke Wilson and Will Ferrell action, you want to see "Old School".

A group of 30-year old men turn a house into a fraternity to recapture their days of beer-drinking and women-catching. But once the dean finds out, it becomes an all out war between these men and the establishment.

The cast is perfect: besides Wilson and Ferrell, you have Vince Vaughn, Elisha Cuthbert, that girl from "Rushmore", Jeremy Piven, and a variety of other cameos. Even James Carville, who is just about the last person you expect to appear in a sophomoric comedy of this type. Well, second to last: Robert Novak would have been stranger.

I have no complaints to make about this film. If you're familiar with the work of these gentlemen, you know what you're getting already. And this is the cream of the crop. If you like their other movies and not this one, I think you're probably out of your mind or on some mind-altering drug like Ketamine. Because how can you not appreciate this? Oh, and it has Terry O'Quinn and Snoop Dogg. Seriously, watch it.

Can't argue about my love for this film. It is funny and not super serious. You can leave your brain at the door. Won't impress the critics, but combining this film with drinks is a must.

Caught a preview showing last night, and I'm a little surprised myself to report that the aptly named Old School is actually a welcome return to a formula all but abandoned by Hollywood for much of the past couple of decades - that of the unapologetic, raucous, cheap laughs for cheap-laughs sake, male-bonding fraternity picture. It is Animal House. It is Porky's. It is every cliche one comes to expect from such a picture - from wild frat house parties to girls wrestling in KY jelly. And, strangely enough, it delivers... with a good cast and a fresh twist. For the group of guys that assemble to start the fraternity that is the heart of Old School are all in their early to mid thirties. They are family men. They are husbands. They are fathers. They are boyfriends involved in serious relationships. They have all grown up.

Or so thought Mitch Martin (Luke Wilson), the "Godfather" of this return to the dorm comedy. When Mitch returns from a business trip to find that his girlfriend (Juliette Lewis) has been hiding from him a rather unnerving secret sex life, the guy begins to question the choices he's made in his life. And his friends are there to help. Best friend and self-made successful businessman Beanie (played with perfect comic timing by Vince Vaughn) suggests they take advantage of Mitch's new found freedom and start a fraternity. And it isn't long before every disillusioned and disenfranchised thirtysomething wants to join - to either recreate their days of reckless youth, or finally belong after years of being an outsider.

Among such misanthropes is Frank the Tank, a character that Will Ferrell makes his own. Literally baring all for the camera, Ferrell, like Saturday night live alum John Belushi before him, plays the wild but affable frat brother - the sad clown, the loveable loser. Ferrell gets all the best lines, but a few are reserved for the sardonic Vaughn. Wilson, to his credit, plays it straight, and the supporting cast (including Leah Remini, Artie Lange, and even the usually annoying Andy Disk in a hilarious cameo) is quite good.

Certainly, Old School is not Oscar material. It's not meant to be. And it makes no pretension to comedy of the kind that My Big Fat Greek wedding brought back into vogue. This is not a feel-good romantic comedy. But it is also not to be dismissed as some insipid throwaway college romp. Old School is intentionally sophomoric (all the more so, as it is director Todd Phillips' second big studio comedy). It is genuinely funny in parts, and a healthy hour and a half return to those days of reckless abandon that many of us dreamt we either had back - or had had in the first place.

Like many others, I heard a lot of buzz about "Old School" before it was released. Things like "it's the new animal house" or "an instant classic". Well, unfortunately that didn't turn out to be the case. However, that doesn't mean its a bad movie. In fact, I loved it and would highly recommend it.

As someone in the same age group as the main characters, perhaps I related too much, but the idea is great: Three 30-something guys who are solidly on the path of a normal, mature life (marriage, kids, real job, etc...) decide to start a fraternity and recapture their college glory days. No, there's no real reason to do this, and no, its not realistic at all.

But who cares? Anyone who has ever been to a raging college party, done a few beer bongs and whippits, screamed along with some loud music, and hooked up with a random coed can immediately relate to this film. Not to mention there really are some gut-busting funny scenes throughout. Luke Wilson is the perfect actor for the steady, reserved professional guy. Will Ferrell is hilarious of course, and Vince Vaughn does what he does so well, playing the instigator trying to help a best friend have fun again. Unfortunately one of his funniest scenes only made it to the deleted scenes section of the DVD.

Which brings me to my main gripe with this movie: what was left on the cutting room floor. The deleted scenes, which can be seen on the DVD of course, aren't just trivial sections that you can understand were cut, some of them are classic. The movie was only an hour and a half long, and for the life of me I can't figure out why the 10 minutes of deleted footage didn't remain. I think some of them really would've changed the entire feel of the movie. The last act kind of changes into this "Rushmore"-ish Wes Anderson knock off, and I think at least a few of the deleted scenes would've helped it make more sense.

Despite that, this movie ranks alongside Dumb & Dumber, Meet the Parents, Kingpin, and American Pie as one of the best comedies of the last decade or so in my humble opinion. No it's not a classic, but it will stand the test of time as a very good comedy that you'll laugh at with each replay.